As part of our eternal quest for knowledge and glory at ISL, we hold a regular internal series of staff-lead professional development classes known as Battle School. It's serious business.

1. Content Strategy
Content Strategy
Battle School // ISL
Eric Shutt
Apr. 10, 2013
Thursday, April 11, 13

2. Content Strategy
What is content?
Content is interconnected media.
Yes, it’s text, images, videos, and audio. But it’s
also the combination, context and connections
between those elements that create meaningful
exploration and experience for the viewer.
Thursday, April 11, 13

3. Content Strategy
What’s a content strategy?
A content strategy plans for the creation, distribution, promotion, and
maintenance of media, across all relevant channels and platforms.
Content strategy involves all of us - designers, developers, and
strategists. We already know and factor into our work lots of aspects of content strategy.
What’s different is that a content strategy is systemic.
Thursday, April 11, 13

4. Content Strategy
Thursday, April 11, 13

5. Content Strategy
Warning (!!):
NO SHORTCUTS
Content aggregation, user generated content, free
content, paid content, or any create-content-quick
scheme is no substitute for a content strategy.
image: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JpSiphSKnXg/TbqyIgl9fiI/AAAAAAAAAss/-9JwbJQBmGs/s1600/no-shortcut.jpg
Thursday, April 11, 13

6. Content Strategy
Goals
In general, useful web content must do both:
1) Meet user expectations and task objectives.
2) Fulfill core business objectives.
http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/OsGgrZqWxiw/Ice+Hockey+Day+5/ZVETbCusKhf/Noora+Raty
Thursday, April 11, 13

7. Content Strategy
So what’s good?
Good content is:
- User-centered: Fills user needs first.
- Short & sweet: Concise.
- Clear: Easy to understand.
- Consistent: Facts, style, and tone.
- Actionable: Leads to behavior that supports goals.
- Supported: Will be maintained properly.
Thursday, April 11, 13

8. Content Strategy
Less, not More!
Why less is better:
- Easier to manage
- More user-friendly
- Less time to create and manage
- Less expensive
Simplify content to solve capacity challenges around
content creation, promotion, and maintenance.
http://floraballantynea2photography.blogspot.com/
Thursday, April 11, 13

9. Content Strategy
Less, not More!
“Our website is a content management system (CMS). It's designed to organize tons of content that
is inserted in little chunks. Right now the website is a big blank slate. It is hard to create an
organizational structure for a CMS with no content.
I would really like everyone to write a few paragraphs (300 words) about some aspect of [our
organization]. Include an image or two. And add a caption, section headers or any kind of stand-out
text. You can email me your content or call me and I will give you an account and teach you how to
create a page.”
- Terrible advice.
Thursday, April 11, 13

10. Content Strategy
Thursday, April 11, 13

11. Content Strategy
#Process
1) DISCOVER
2) CREATE
3) DELIVER
4) MAINTAIN
Thursday, April 11, 13

12. Content Strategy
DISCOVER
Research: Content Audit & Inventory, Content
Sources, User Research, Audience, Stakeholder
Interviews, website analytics, keyword and sentiment
analysis, content gaps, Current and expected technology
and platforms, competitors.
Thursday, April 11, 13

13. Content Strategy
CREATE
Define: Business goals, project objectives, content requirements, functional requirements,
content migration, core messaging, style guidelines, content schedule, legal requirements, format
requirements, content owners, workflows, approval.
Design:
- Structure: Site maps, page types, wireframes,, mood boards.
- Content: Message & visual hierarchy, workflow, page tables, copywriting, photo, video, roles.
Develop: Stack selection, CMS templates, devices, system integrations, Metadata, content
inventory, Usability Testing, Q/A, SEO guidelines.
Thursday, April 11, 13

14. Content Strategy
CREATE
Workflow & Management:
- Why?: Ask yourself, why are we creating this, and what will it accomplish?
- Creation: “It’s not copy. It’s content.”
- Draft to Approval: Who’s responsible?
- Timeline: Publishing schedule & calendar.
- Promotion: How, where, why?
- Maintenance: How will the content age?
- Technology Platforms: What supports and deliver the content?
Thursday, April 11, 13

15. Content Strategy
CREATE
Boxes:
Every piece of content is a box
with an arrow in and an arrow out.
The arrow in is user navigation to
the page through promotion, search,
in-bound links, or another source.
The arrow out is the action the
user takes on that page, and the
landing page for that action.
Thursday, April 11, 13

16. Content Strategy http://www.123rf.com/photo_13823239_grid-background-blue-red-on-black.html
CREATE
Page Types:
Think of pages more for their function and less for their topic or content style.
Content can be many types of media - text, photo, video.
- Routers: Get people to other, specific content.
- Attention getters: Shared on Social Media
- Convincer / supporting page: Additional info to close the deal.
- Action page: Where the magic happens.
Thursday, April 11, 13

17. Content Strategy http://www.123rf.com/photo_13823239_grid-background-blue-red-on-black.html
CREATE
Page Guide Sections
Page Message
- Page title - Audience
- Business Goal - Key messages
- Page Goal - Priority 1
- Priority 2
Priority - Source material
Action
Visibility - Promotion
- Navigation
- Action
Effort Level
Results
- Measurement
Navigation - Maintenance
Thursday, April 11, 13

18. Content Strategy
DELIVER
Deploy: Active promotion, calendar, schedule, link
and search strategy.
http://iamwalkingbackwards.blogspot.com/2012/08/jesus-delivers.html
Thursday, April 11, 13

19. Content Strategy
DELIVER
Promotion:
- Channels
- Navigation
- Responsibility (who)
- Timeline / schedule
http://iamwalkingbackwards.blogspot.com/2012/08/jesus-delivers.html
Thursday, April 11, 13

20. Content Strategy
DELIVER
Schedule:
- Editorial calendar.
- Creation (drafting through approval).
- Publishing.
Thursday, April 11, 13

21. Content Strategy
DELIVER
Channels:
- Website
- Email
- Social media / networks
- PR
- Search engines
- Inbound links
- Advertising
- Print
- TV
Thursday, April 11, 13

22. Content Strategy
MAINTAIN
Maintain: Editorial maintenance, technology
maintenance, analyze, refine and update content.
http://www.abcsd.org/resource/public-works-resources?chapter=abcsd
Thursday, April 11, 13

23. Content Strategy http://www.choosemontgomerymd.com/business-community/industry-sectors/real-estate-construction
MAINTAIN
Editorial & Formatting:
- Information quality
- Layout updates.
- Image / frame sizing.
- Responsive & mobile
Thursday, April 11, 13

24. Content Strategy http://www.worldpropertychannel.com/north-america-commercial-news/
american-institute-of-architects-aia-nonresidential-construction-industry-
consensus-construction-forecast-economic-improvement-kermit-baker-
commercial-construction-report-6496.php
MAINTAIN
Platforms:
- Technology maintenance
- Platform upgrades
Thursday, April 11, 13

25. Content Strategy
MAINTAIN
Measure + Refine
- Measure and analyze data.
- Use key findings to modify
and improve content strategy.
Thursday, April 11, 13

26. Content Strategy
ADDL RESOURCES
Content Strategy for the Web, by Kristina Halvorson
http://www.amazon.com/Content-Strategy-Web-Kristina-Halvorson/dp/0321808304
The Elements of Content Strategy, by Erin Kissane
http://www.abookapart.com/products/the-elements-of-content-strategy
Kira Marchenese, Online Communications for Nonprofits
http://kiramarch.com/
Thursday, April 11, 13

27. Content Strategy
That’s it!
END
Thursday, April 11, 13